Anyone who has sat through three ERP demos in a row knows the problem: each vendor is excellent on its own slides. The harder question is which system fits your plant, your team and your budget, and that cannot be answered by a ranking. This guide shows how to compare ERP systems for a manufacturing plant fairly, where Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations (F&O) sits next to SAP S/4HANA, Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP and other alternatives, when it is a good fit and when it is not, and how F&O differs from Business Central. A note on our position first: Mazaya is a Microsoft Solutions Partner and implements Dynamics 365 only. We are not a neutral advisor, so we have written this as a method you can apply to every vendor you shortlist, including us. Statements about other systems come from those vendors’ own documentation and public announcements, and you should confirm them with each vendor.

How do you compare ERP systems fairly?

Compare them against the same written criteria, with your own plant’s scenarios, and give each criterion a weight before you see any demo. A fair method has three parts: criteria agreed by operations, finance and IT together; a short script of your real scenarios that every vendor must run (an urgent order, a late supplier, an imported shipment, a month-end close); and evidence from reference customers in similar plants.
We suggest six criteria. They replace “easiest to use” and “integrates with Microsoft”, which sound objective but favor whoever wrote the slide.

What should you ask on each of the six criteria?

1. Manufacturing depth. Does the system handle your production type (discrete, process, mixed), and how does it plan and schedule? Ask each vendor to show your bill of materials, your route and a capacity-constrained schedule, not a generic demo.
2. Fit with the tools you already use. Integration is about your landscape, not the vendor’s. If your teams live in Excel, Power BI and Microsoft 365, a Microsoft platform is a natural fit. If you already run SAP or Oracle systems elsewhere in the group, the integration argument can point the other way.
3. Total cost of ownership. Do not compare license prices. Compare the full cost over five years: subscription or licenses, implementation, hosting, integrations, support, internal staff and upgrades. We do not quote figures here because they depend on scope and number of users, and any single number in an article should make you suspicious.
4. Implementation speed and risk. Speed depends on scope, data quality, how much you customize and the partner’s experience, more than on the product. Ask each vendor for a phased plan and for references that went live in plants like yours.
5. Flexibility versus standardization. Every ERP sits on a spectrum between best-practice processes and customization. SAP’s partners describe Public Edition as a standardized, fit-to-standard model, while Private Edition and on-premise options allow deeper changes. Standardization is faster and easier to upgrade; flexibility fits unusual processes but costs more to maintain. Decide where your plant needs to sit.
6. Local support and Saudi requirements. Check Arabic support, e-invoicing, local hosting and, above all, the local partner team that will actually deliver. On e-invoicing, Microsoft documents electronic invoicing features for Saudi Arabia in Dynamics 365 Finance and Supply Chain Management, including ZATCA phase two submission, which still requires configuration and onboarding (Microsoft Learn, electronic invoicing in Saudi Arabia). Ask every vendor for the equivalent documentation. On hosting, SAP has operated a public cloud data center in the Kingdom since 2018 and offers RISE with SAP hosted on Google Cloud’s local data centers, and Oracle has an Oracle Cloud Jeddah region. Microsoft’s Saudi Arabia East region is scheduled for November 2026, and its announcement refers to supported services and eligible workloads without listing them, so confirm the specific hosting plan for the Dynamics 365 services you need.

When does Dynamics 365 F&O fit, and when does it not?

F&O fits best when a manufacturer has outgrown spreadsheets and basic accounting, runs more than one plant or legal entity, and wants finance, supply chain and production on one data model with tools its teams already know. It also suits companies that value a single vendor ecosystem for analytics and productivity.
It fits less well when the plant is small and its processes are simple, which is where Business Central is usually the better match. It also fits less well when the group already runs another ERP deeply and the integration cost outweighs the benefit, or when a highly specialized production process needs a vertical system. And any ERP fits badly when the organization is not ready to fix its data and processes first.

F&O or Business Central: how do size and complexity decide?

As a general rule, Business Central suits smaller manufacturers with simpler structures, and F&O suits larger or more complex ones, but complexity matters more than headcount. Both support core manufacturing, including production orders, bills of materials and routes.
F&O is usually the better fit with several plants or legal entities, advanced scheduling or process manufacturing, multiple currencies and jurisdictions, or demanding finance and compliance requirements. Business Central is usually the better fit with one or a few sites, mostly standard production, a need for a lighter and faster implementation, and a simple finance structure. Some companies start with one and grow into the other. Mazaya implements both, so the recommendation follows your requirements.

What are the honest strengths and limits of F&O?

The strengths are a unified data model across finance, supply chain and production, support for discrete, process and lean manufacturing in one environment, planning and finite-capacity scheduling through Planning Optimization, and a familiar ecosystem of Excel, Power BI and the Microsoft platform. The limits matter as much.
It is a large platform, so implementation needs planning and a capable partner. It does not replace a shop-floor execution system. Results depend heavily on the quality of your bills of materials, stock records and lead times, as with any ERP. Customers on the older built-in planning engine should plan a migration to Planning Optimization. And on local hosting, Microsoft’s Saudi region is newer than the in-Kingdom options SAP and Oracle already advertise, so confirm how that affects your data residency needs.

Which ERP fits which type of plant?

No single system fits every plant, and the sensible answer depends on the plant type. A mid-sized plant with simple processes and one site should look first at lighter systems, including Business Central. A group with several plants, entities and currencies, a Microsoft-centered IT landscape and mixed production is a natural candidate for F&O. A group already standardized on SAP or Oracle, with deep in-house skills, may reasonably extend what it has. A process manufacturer with strict regulatory and batch requirements should test each shortlisted system on its own recipes and traceability scenario. A fast-growing plant with limited IT staff should weigh implementation risk and partner support above feature lists.

Frequently asked questions   

Is Dynamics 365 F&O better than SAP or Oracle for manufacturers?

No system is better in general. Each is strong in different situations, and the answer depends on your plant type, existing landscape, team skills, budget and the quality of the local partner. Use the six criteria and run the same scenarios with every vendor.

What are the main SAP alternatives for manufacturers?

They fall into three groups: other global suites such as Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP and Dynamics 365 F&O, mid-market ERPs for smaller plants such as Business Central, and industry-specific ERPs built for a particular production type. Which group to explore first depends on your size and process complexity.

 Which system costs less?

There is no honest answer without scope. Compare five-year total cost of ownership, including implementation, hosting, support and internal staff, not license prices alone.

 How long should an ERP evaluation take?
 Long enough to run your real scenarios with each shortlisted vendor and to speak to reference customers in similar plants. Rushing this stage is the most expensive mistake in the process.

 Do we need a global brand for a Saudi plant?
 Not necessarily. What matters is documented support for Saudi requirements, Arabic usability, a credible local delivery team and references in the Kingdom. Ask each vendor for them.

  Compare Dynamics 365 F&O against your own requirements
The most useful comparison is run on your bills of materials, your routes and your reports. Contact us to book a consultation or a demo, and we will test Dynamics 365 F&O against your criteria, including the cases where another system or Business Central may be the better fit. Reach us at info@mazayasolutions.com, or at mazayasolutions.com.

   About Mazaya Integrated Solutions

 Mazaya Integrated Solutions is a Microsoft Solutions Partner with more than 20 years in the technology market and a growing footprint across the Gulf. Founded in 2005 as a software development company, Mazaya moved its headquarters to Kuwait in 2014 to expand regionally, and in 2023 relocated it to Riyadh as part of a company-wide restructuring. Its end-to-end implementation and consulting services center on Microsoft Dynamics 365, including Finance & Operations for financial and supply chain management, Business Central, CRM and Contact Center, alongside AI and robotic process automation, cybersecurity, risk and compliance, and cloud and infrastructure solutions.
Mazaya works with Saudi ministries and government authorities as well as companies in the food, financial, real estate, healthcare and education sectors across Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, and holds ISO 9001, 27001, 45001, 14001, 20000-1, 22301 and 42001 certifications. With offices in Riyadh and Kuwait, the team helps decision-makers choose the systems that fit their operations and turn them into measurable results. To discuss your plant, email info@mazayasolutions.com or visit www.mazayasolutions.com.